Update After 6 Months of Inferno Hot Pilates

About 6 months ago, I attended the Inferno Hot Pilates Teacher Training.Friends and colleagues of mine had been raving about this high intensity, low impact workout.Bikram Yoga teachers and students were saying things like, "this is going to help your students!" and "this is going to make you have more fun teaching!" and "IHP is the perfect complement to Bikram Yoga!"I've always considered myself a Bikram Yoga teacher who wants to do the best for her students, so finally I could ignore it no longer; I had to see what all the buzz was about!And boy, I'm so glad I did.I published the post "6 Things To Know About Inferno Hot Pilates" after attending the teacher training, and I'm beyond grateful that my yogi friends and students have approached this workout with an open mind.We can get pretty stuck in a comfortable routine, after all, and trying something new often feels scary.I wanted to post this update to share my experience about the changes I've noticed in my own body and mind since starting IHP, the effect IHP has had on my yoga teaching, as well as the improvements I've seen first-hand in my yoga students.

My body:

• For the first time in my life, I can do push ups. Probably about ten push ups in a row with good, solid form.
• Right now, I'm 11 months postpartum after having my third 9+ pound baby in less than 4 years. (10 pounds for my first born and 9lbs., 5oz. for the second two to be exact). Yowza. I had some muscle separation in my stomach that's been significantly repaired from IHP
• My hands do not slip in Bikram Yoga any more; I believe the grip strength I've built from tricep push ups has helped strengthen my hands. This means I can work on improving postures like Standing Bow and Standing Head to Knee without worrying about slipping. So fun!
• I've eliminated pain in my upper back which is a new experience having a baby so young. With my other two children I had a lot of neck, shoulder, and upper back pain from holding them, favoring one side, and breastfeeding. I'm still breastfeeding and favoring one side, but without pain. My back feels stronger and more supported.
• While I strongly believe any workout class should give you more benefits than just physical (exercise needs to feed your mind and soul too!), it's pretty cool that my skinny jeans are no longer skinny jeans - they just fit me regularly. I'm pretty darn proud of that after having three kids in such a short amount of time.
• This might sound really weird, but I feel like I'm in high school .. in a good way! Maybe because of the upbeat music in class, maybe because the exercises are similar to what my teams did at track and softball practice. All I know is that it's a great feeling!

My mind:

• I feel younger mentally ... sharper, quicker, more alert. I think the different exercises in each class make me pay attention.
• The music and intensity makes my soul feel young and happy ☺️
• I'm excited, just more excited in general, about everything, especially on days when I do a workout.
• I feel more determined mentally about business and my studio, like if I can accomplish that challenging workout, I can do anything.
• I'm open to new things now more than ever because opening my mind to this class had such a positive effect on my life.

My teaching:

• Because I have the flexibility to change something in IHP based on the class's ability and energy, I'm much more in tune with the yoga class's ability and energy.
• I feel like teaching IHP has given me a platform to challenge people more and let them push their edges. The approach in yoga is different; I believe Bikram Yoga is still more about pacing yourself, yet at the same time I'm feeling like I can help yoga students discover a new edge that maybe they didn't know existed.
• To be totally honest, I'm having more FUN teaching yoga than I ever thought I could! IHP is such a fun class to teach, and I feel like I'm bringing that joy with me into yoga.
• I have a better understanding of the body's core (think: glutes, abs, pelvic floor) and how strengthening it supports the yoga postures and the spine.

My students:

• While every student is different, these are some of the things I've been hearing and witnessing:
  • People that would have had to stop coming over the summer were able to continue to practice because of the shorter class and different time IHP was offered
  • They love the music
  • The class goes by so fast
  • They've lost weight
  • Their backs feel better, better than they've felt in years
  • They feel strong, like really strong (and they look strong!!!)
  • They improve VERY quickly (I'm talking 3-4 classes and they can do so much more!)
  • Their yoga postures are more precise, they have better alignment, and they don't fatigue
  • Things like sciatica and lower back pain have been reduced or eliminated (the bridge series in IHP really helps strengthen the glutes which supports the lower back).

I made a big leap and have decided to offer IHP at my studio Hometown Sweat two evenings a week (Tuesdays & Thursdays) in addition to Saturday afternoon, Tuesday and Thursday early mornings, and Monday, Wednesday, Friday at noon. I was nervous to make this change (again, doing something one way for so long got me in a comfortable little rut, but it was a rut still the same).All I can say is that I'm so grateful for all of the students' and teachers' excitement!The biggest thing IHP has given me after 6 months is a level of confidence I didn't know was there.This experience has taught me that branching out is actually a really good thing! It's brought a tremendous amount of growth and personal development.And not only did branching out introduce me to something that can really help my students and myself, it also made me appreciate what we're already doing - Bikram Yoga - more than I thought I could.If you're in the Metro West area, come take class in Natick at Hometown Sweat. You can check out our schedule here and experience this amazing class for yourself!